Calling a student ‘chashmish’, ‘kalu’ will amount to ragging

Officials at S N Medical College in Agra have taken a tough stand against ragging and passed new rules in this regard. Notices have been put up across the campus, warning senior students that even certain words and gestures will be treated as ragging. Among the words banned include ‘chashmish‘, which is used to belittle those wearing spectacles and ‘kalu’, which is used to make fun of dark-skinned people.

The president of the anti-ragging cell at the college, Dr. S K Katharia said, “Any act of physical or mental abuse including bullying and exclusion, targeted at another student, whether a fresher or otherwise, on the ground of color, race, religion, caste, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, appearance, region, nationality, linguistic identity or others will count as ragging.”

“If any student is found guilty of such acts, they can be suspended, rusticated, and removed from the hostel, have their results withheld or face a fine up to Rs 25,000 or higher,” Katharia added.

On the topic of dress code, Katharia said, “We do not force any student to cut their hair very short, or wear uniforms or buy textbooks from a particular shop. Even senior students found instructing juniors to follow any dress code will be punished according to the rules.”